Next Goal Wins Review: Reverse-Ted Lasso Is Formulaic, But Very Funny

Taika Waititi's "Next Goal Wins," a fictionalized version of the 2014 documentary of the same name, was filmed all the way back in 2019. It was one of a number of films delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was delayed further due to Waititi's work on "Thor: Love and Thunder." It also had to undergo reshoots to replace a minor role initially played by alleged abuser and potential cannibal Armie Hammer with Will Arnett. At the film's world premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, one of the story's subjects, Jaiyah Saelua (played by Kaimana in the film), said she thought for a while that the film was never going to get released.

In the time between the filming and release of "Next Goal Wins," we've seen three full seasons of "Ted Lasso," which might simultaneously be the best and worst thing for this film's potential success. The Apple TV+ series shows there's a massive audience for soccer comedies with a positive attitude, but now "Next Goal Wins" has a lot to live up to with the inevitable comparisons — and "Ted Lasso" itself has been subject to growing backlash among some corners of the internet.

Waititi has also faced growing backlash. I liked "Jojo Rabbit," but it was understandably controversial to apply Waititi's light comical tone to that subject matter. "Thor: Love and Thunder" had its high points but was very messy overall, and critics have grown harsher towards the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general. Throw in overexposure from acting appearances, clickbait-y interviews, and his tabloid romance with Rita Ora, and there's a large contingent in the entertainment press that's simply sick of Waititi and would need his next movie to be amazing to turn around on him. Unfortunately, "Next Goal Wins" is not amazing. Fortunately, it's still a really funny movie with enough of a distinct cultural perspective to make something interesting out of its formulaic story.

Both "Ted Lasso" and "Next Goal Wins" center around struggling soccer teams that bring in a coach from another country to shake things up, but the character dynamics are flipped between the two stories. Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) is initially ignorant to the rules of the game but gradually earns the respect of the players by sheer kindness and helps them improve. In "Next Goal Wins," it's the American Samoan football players and their federation leader Tavita (Oscar Kightley) who are the unskilled but unflappably nice and optimistic ones, not even caring about winning so much as being able to score any goal a decade after the most embarrassing loss in soccer history (31-0 against Australia in 2001). In contrast, the new coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender) is a complete jerk who for much of the movie is not actually of much help to the team.

Waititi is clearly using this story as a means to parody white savior narratives — the trope gets called out by name at one point. One particularly funny scene involves tricking Thomas into sticking with the team by playing off of mystical Indigenous stereotypes that white people "love." The cultural setting is a big part of what makes the film interesting, and various aspects of life in American Samoa make for great running gags, like the way everyone works seemingly every job, the extreme religiosity that causes the town to freeze in prayer at certain times, and the island-wide 20 mph speed limit which results in the world's slowest police chase.

One of the weaknesses of "Next Goal Wins" is that most of the individual players aren't developed. A few — Daru Taumua (Beulah Koale), Nicky Salapu (Uli Latukefu), and Rambo (Semu Filipo) — make positive impressions through humor, but there's really only one player we truly come to care about: Jaiyah Saelua, a fa'afafine third gender player who eventually becomes the team's captain. Jaiyah's story is the most unique and emotionally complex part of the film, and the authentically-cast fa'afafine actor Kaimana is a natural screen presence who deserves many more big acting roles in the future.

Thomas is initially transphobic and antagonistic towards Jaiyah, but he does come to be more understanding and realizes how vital she is to the team's potential success. Some viewers have been put off enough by Thomas' displays of transphobia and gone so far as to describe the film itself as transphobic, or at least a "Green Book"-style usage of a marginalized character to further a cishet white guy's redemption arc. I'm open to hearing criticisms from trans critics, but from my perspective, a film that gets audiences actively applauding and cheering for a trans athlete is a win. Jaiyah holds too much interest of her own to be seen as merely a vehicle for Thomas' growth, and everyone except Thomas accepts her without question. In a way, the film might sadly be more radical today than it was when it was filmed four years ago — it explains how professional sports monitor hormone levels (Jaiyah will eventually need to switch to a women's team), a fact that too many people today actively ignore amidst all the fearmongering about trans women in sports.

"Next Goal Wins" is a bit loose in its middle act, getting by mainly on comedy and good vibes, and with the exception of a few details, you know exactly where it's gonna go in its final act. That final act, however, is thrilling. It plays into the expected underdog sports movie cliches, sure, but it does so with verve and humor. The editing in the final match is great; Waititi's interest in storytelling shines in the way it's presented from the perspective of multiple different narrators, each mythologizing the events in their own fashion. Be sure to stick through the credits as well for one last cheeky laugh. "Next Goal Wins" might not be great cinema, but it's a great time.

"Next Goal Wins" opens in theaters on November 17.